Over the past six years, I have had the privilege of serving the people of Hancock and Washington counties in the Maine Senate. This year, I have the honor of serving again on the Health and Human Services Committee.

During my years of service on this committee, I have worked to address the opioid crisis — a tragedy that has seen us lose too many of our fellow Mainers. It is critical that we find more options for patients to address acute pain without the risk of falling into substance use disorder.

In the last Legislature, I was proud to support L.D. 2096, a new law requiring insurance carriers in Maine to cover non-narcotic and non-addictive alternatives to opioids for pain management. This law is a great step forward, especially with the recent news that the FDA has approved the use of a non-opioid painkiller.

Congress can and should take further action by passing the Alternatives to PAIN Act. This bill would increase the availability of non-opioid alternatives for seniors through Medicare. Under this proposal, older Mainers on Medicare Part D would never pay more for a non-opioid than they would for an opioid prescription.

We have seen too many tragedies in communities across our state. I respectfully urge our federal delegation to support the Alternatives to PAIN Act so that we can avoid these tragedies in the future.

Sen. Marianne Moore
Senate District 6
Calais